Written by Bob Weir for the American Standard – Has the Term ‘Racism’ Become Obsolete

Has the Term ‘Racism’ Become Obsolete?

It seems that you can’t get through a day on social media, or watching news programs, without hearing the words racist, bigot, sexist, homophobe, or some other offensive term, the use of which has become so routine as to render its usage meaningless. I’ve read threads on Facebook that begin with a poster telling us how much he detested the policies of the Obama administration. Within minutes, someone is sure to counter with accusations of racism. It’s an effective tactic, because such a label strikes terror in the hearts and minds of decent people. (Genuine bigots are not bothered by such accusations because they recognize the accuracy of the charge and may even be proud of it.) It also has the effect of controlling the dialogue in a given situation. Putting people on defense forces them to assure their accusers how open-minded and fair they are, rather than debating the issue in question. The accuser is on offense, the accused on defense.

Listening to these vituperative exercises would make one think we were still living in the 1950s and ’60s, when blacks were in segregated areas of cities, schools, and buses. Moreover, if you dare to proclaim that blacks have overcome the racial barriers of the past, someone is certain to tell you there’s still a long way to go. It doesn’t matter that there are black billionaires, black titans of industry, black Hollywood celebrities winning Oscars, Emmys, Golden Globes, and dozens of awards for music, sports, and academic excellence. Furthermore, the fact that a black man was president of the most powerful country in the world for the past eight years also doesn’t seem to curtail the notion that racism is rampant in our country.

If there’s still a long way to go, it would seem that whites could say the same about their progress, thereby making the statement relevant to every race or nationality. The difference is that when blacks don’t get the job, the promotion, the role, the nomination, and so forth, they can claim it’s because of their color. Whites get passed up for the same things all the time, but they don’t have the same crutch to lean on. That “crutch” has a crippling effect on those who find it easier to blame the system for their lack of success, rather than admit to their own inadequacies.

Additionally, the casual use of racial accusations tends to delegitimize actual bias inasmuch as it becomes a “cry wolf” scenario that incurs public skepticism and contempt. Hence, when someone with an obvious racial bias is accused, it may fall on deaf ears for those who are tired of hearing the same old hackneyed refrain. Nevertheless, for those who seek to gain the advantage by using reckless exhortations, the most they can expect to achieve is a Pyrrhic victory over those who are easily intimidated. On the other hand, it’s refreshing to see an increasing number of prominent blacks criticizing race hustlers. Of course, when they do, they get assailed as “Uncle Toms” or “house negroes.”

When Donald Trump talked during the campaign about building a wall and stopping the flow of criminal aliens and the flood of drugs across our southern border, he was smeared with some sort of “ism.” The purpose of such calumny is to create the false image of American hatred for Mexicans. Once again, we’re supposed to launch into a self-redeeming monologue about how many of our family members and friends are Hispanic in order to assure our bogus inquisitors how utterly human we are. Not that it will have any effect on the anti-America crowd, who view such pathetic rebuttals as weaknesses to exploit. Consequently, when President Trump tries to fulfill the campaign promises that got him elected, he’s an easy target for the smear merchants and open border nihilists who will be happy only if they could destroy our country’s sovereignty.

In the final analysis, we must decide if race-baiting is going to be the weapon that defeats us, or are we going to stand our ground and refuse to have our free speech and our security marginalized by those who use skin pigmentation and other spurious distractions to blur the line between common sense and a muddled form of judgment? Fortunately, we have a president with an iron will who doesn’t let his detractors divert his attention with fake narratives. If he can deal with a powerful corrupt establishment and their equally venal cronies in the left-wing media, pounding on him every hour of every day, we should be strong enough to have his back by not getting wobbly-kneed every time hate-mongers call us names on social media.